Carrol Cox wrote:
> I also don't read Greek, and I don't necessarily accept
> that a given translation of Herodotus catches the prose
> rhythms of the original, but I do accept the authority of
> the translator as to the number of generations (according
> to Herodotus) that separated him from Homer.
I recall reading two translations of a Chinese poem. One by Arthur Whately and one by Joseph Needham. I don't think that one person out of a hundred would recognize that they came from the same source. The translation of Primitive Accumulation is very different from what Marx (Adam Smith) wrote -- although I think that the mistranslation adds to the subject.
I think that the whole idea of the scientific method is that a person has to be able draw upon an existing body of knowledge on which s/he feels that s/he can rely. Thus, from my prior reading I have the feeling that I can prioritize my future reading, ignoring some and seeking others.
As an undergraduate, I always tried to look for what my professors all rejected -- Nietzsche (who they said cause Nazism, Marx --- [Carrol, this was at your Univ. of Michigan]. It proved to be a useful rule of thumb. -- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Chico, CA 95929
Tel. 530-898-5321 E-Mail michael at ecst.csuchico.edu